I spent a good portion of my day and a good portion of my checkbook balance yesterday at Wal Mart and Target purchasing school supplies for the three kiddoes. Ugh.
I truly think the back to school supply lists have become a sneaky torture device created by school administrators in conjunction with the paper industry and the big box retailers. I mean, come on folks, black dual pocket prong folders just don't grow on trees, or at least not in my fair town. And that is not to mention wide rule, 70 count purple notebooks.
In the aisles of Target yesterday, you could almost cut the frustration with a knife as moms, some with kids in tow (I leave mine at home), try and find the elusive pink marble composition books. Seriously, one year I didn't buy enough marble covered composition books and had to have my parents, all the way on the other side of our state, buy them and ship them to me!
Then of course, once all listed items are hunted down, purchased and hauled to school, the kids will come home with a list of extra things they 'must' have and return things that were itemized on the original list that they now don't need.
Want to know what I went to my K-8 Catholic grade school with? One trapper keeper, a few black pens and a few pencils. Yep, that was it. No bandaids, no Purell, no paper towels, no low odor dry erase markers, no oil pastels, no rainbow inspired selection of notebooks and folders.
Apparently my education suffered because I didn't have three varieties of markers, plus crayons plus colored pencils. Never realized I was so disadvantaged. That must be why I didn't turn out to be a great 'arteeeest.'
Stepping off the soapbox now and taking the dog for a walk.
3 comments:
i thought i might be able to get through the day without a xanax - LOL! trash that idea!
i am stressing over paying for Zackery's kindergarten uniforms, Good God, now i am in full force panic mode! ***Ü***
ps. suffer you did not! you are a brilliant arteeest with your writing, and humor, LOL!
I 'heart' you, Elizabeth:)!!! Be glad for the uniform cost, believe me, the longer you can keep them in uniforms the better off you are! The back to school clothing budget was severly cut this year in our house. The wailing and gnashing of teeth has finally dropped to a low hum, more like white noise now that I can tune out as needed!
Liz, if YOU were disadvantaged by needing so few school supplies, time-travel back a generation or two earlier. WE had to have a Red (or maybe Blue) Horse wide-lined tablet and two number 2 pencils. Period. We could wear whatever our parents could afford to buy, or make at home on the sewing machine, and lunch money was 25 cents for a full meal. Deprived? Oh yeah.. we were so disadvantaged that we had Art and Music every day and LEARNED geography. history and civics in addition to the three Rs. Poor us.
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